apologist

noun

apol·​o·​gist ə-ˈpä-lə-jist 

plural apologists

: someone who speaks or writes in defense of someone or something that is typically controversial, unpopular, or subject to criticism

… an apologist for moneyed interests.

—S. L. Price

Apologists argued that funneling contracts to his children did not matter too much since the projects—new roads, factories, airports—did get built.

—Johanna McGeary

Apologists for the status quo will always claim that if change were really needed, the market would have already made it happen.

—Michael Grunwald

Examples of apologist in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

But his style is far from the stridency of provocateurs such as Candace Owens and Newsmax’s Trump apologists. —Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 25 Apr. 2025

Sarah Jessica Parker herself has always been open about being a Carrie apologist, just like her newer fans. —Daisy Jones, Vogue, 22 Apr. 2025

The circuit’s emergence split the men’s game and left the Australian golfer widely derided as a glib, greedy apologist for Saudi Arabia and its human rights abuses. —Alan Blinder, New York Times, 12 Apr. 2025

Even his most reliable defenders and apologists were growing weary of the talk about these tariffs, which are only just now starting to be felt. —Philip Elliott, Time, 9 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from New Latin apologista, from Late Latin apologia "defense in speech or writing" + New Latin -ista -ist entry 1 — more at apology

First Known Use

1602, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for apologist

• biologist
• ecologist
• ethnologist
• geologist
• hydrologist
• neurologist
• oncologist
• pathologist
• philologist
• psychologist
• technologist
• urologist

Kids Definition

apologist

noun

apol·​o·​gist ə-ˈpäl-ə-jəst 

: one who speaks or writes in defense of a faith, cause, or institution